World's First High Bay Container Storing System revealed in Dubai

An international joint venture formed by global trade enabler DP World and industrial engineering specialists SMS group will revolutionize the way that containers are handled in ports. A new and intelligent storing system will be applied for the first time ever at Jebel Ali Terminal 4, in time for the Dubai Expo 2020 world fair.

The High Bay Storage system was originally developed by SMS group subsidiary AMOVA for round-the-clock handling of metal coils that weigh as much as 50 tons each in racks as high as 50 metres. AMOVA is the first company to transfer this proven technology to the port industry.

Instead of stacking containers directly on top of each other, which has been global standard practice for decades, the system places each container in an individual rack compartment. Containers are stored in an eleven-story rack, creating 200 percent more capacity than a conventional container terminal, or creating the same capacity in less than a third of the space.

Thanks to the rack´s design, each container can be accessed without having to move another one, enabling 100 percent utilization in a terminal yard. The system brings big gains in speed, energy efficiency, better safety and a major reduction in costs. Costs are further cut by the ability to shorten the time taken to load and unload mega-ships by as much as 30 percent.

2018-12-18

McKeil Marine's Evans Spirit won the International Bulk Journal's 2016 Ship of the Year Award during the IBJ's Salute to Excellence in the Maritime Bulk Industry gala awards ceremony in London, UK on November 21.

"It's a fantastic way to closeout our 60th anniversary year: having a vessel named after our founder, Evans McKeil, win this prestigious international award," said Steve Fletcher, President and CEO of McKeil Marine.

Acquired by McKeil in 2015, the Evans Spirit is a cargo ship with the shallow draught characters of a tug and barge; however, compared to a tug-and-barge unit, she can transport approximately 40 per cent more cargo about 50 per cent faster on a very similar amount of fuel. She is in service throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.

Evans Spirit was shortlisted for 2016 Ship of the Year competing with three other vessels: CS Bright, Mitsui OSK Lines, Japan; Damen Shipyards, Netherlands; and MN Baroque, Swiss Marine, Switzerland. The award is presented to the owner, operator or builder of an outstanding individual bulk ship. Judged on operational efficiency, design innovation, safety and environmental protection, the Evans Spirit was selected as winner. (Photo Paul Beesley).

The St. Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes ports are reporting significant growth in cargo volumes that is expected to carry through in the final two weeks of the 2018 season. Overall cargo volumes through the St. Lawrence Seaway from March 29 to November 30 topped 36 million metric tons, up 5.3 per cent over the same period in 2017.

"We expect the busy momentum from November to carry through to when the Seaway closes at the end of December," said Terence Bowles, President and CEO of The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation. "Overall cargo volumes will meet our forecasts to top 40 million metric tons in 2018. Combined with the 2017 performance, St. Lawrence Seaway shipping has grown 14 per cent over the past two years, underlining the importance of this trade corridor to the success of the many industries we serve in the region."

Road salt was a key performer in November, as cities and towns prepared for the long winter ahead.

Canadian grain exports through the Seaway were also a highlight in November and a flurry of deliveries have continued into December as the new harvests come through. Year-to-November Canadian Seaway grain shipments totaled 8.2 million metric tons, up 15 per cent over last year. Prairie and Ontario wheat sales are benefitting from a smaller Russian harvest as a result of weather conditions. Canadian corn exports this year have benefitted from preferential access to European Union markets combined with retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products.

Total grain was up 18.5 per cent at 10.4 million tons, while coal was also up and iron ore was down 10 per cent at 6.8 million tons.

Ports throughout the Great Lakes have seen the impact of business growth too. The Port of Hamilton surpassed 10 million metric tons in November, topping their 2017 year-long total of 9.8 million metric tons of cargo.

Canada's new Naval Support Ship returns to Canada after a flawless one-year international deployment

Today, Canada's Resolve-Class Naval Support Ship Astérix arrived back in Canada for the first time following a year-long deployment throughout the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Since delivery from Davie Shipbuilding in January 2018, the fully NATO compliant support vessel with 4 replenishment-at-sea masts, has maintained 100% utilization without a single day of downtime, something which is virtually unheard of in naval ship operations. Not bad for a ship which has been described as useless by some.

During 2018, Astérix has travelled 51,062 nautical miles, performed 138 supply operations with 9 allied navies and delivered over 20 million litres of fuel at sea. It has taken part in five international naval exercises and operated naval patrols in South East Asia and on the Korean Peninsula. To accomplish this, 96,931 meals were served on board during 2018.

On arrival in Victoria, Captain Bernard Wentzell reflected on the past year, "this ship has been a dream come true for those serving in her and also for our NATO and Indo-Pacific allies. She is comfortable, technologically superior and highly efficient."

Wentzell added, "when you deliver a service which exceeds your client's expectations you feel a sense of pride but when you deliver a service which is directly contributing to a safer and better world, you feel a real sense of purpose. The professionalism of both the Federal Fleet Services team aboard and ashore and that of the Royal Canadian Navy was evident in how quickly and efficiently the teams rose to the challenge this year. After nearly an entire year of operations, free of incidents, I can firmly say that we, together, are one of the world's best naval support teams. Astérix has been a fantastic showcase of the best in Canadian military equipment and at every port visit, Astérix has become the envy of our host nation. This is what a Canadian success story looks like."